A Drawn-Out Nomination Fight Is More Likely Than Ever
Senator Bernie Sanderss unexpectedly narrow victory in New Hampshire underscored the splintering of the Democratic presidential field that was evident in last weeks murky Iowa caucusand left two of his opponents facing grim questions about their future viability.
Just as in Iowa, the results illuminated the inability of any of the contenders to build a coalition broad enough to span the party or establish much separation from rival candidates. The roughly 26 percent share of the total vote that Sanders captured represents much less than half of his winning 60 percent just four years ago. And similar to former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigiegs performance in Iowa, Sanders won the smallest share of voters ever garnered by a Democratic winner of the New Hampshire primary. (The previous low was nearly 29 percent, for Jimmy Carter in 1976.)
The New Hampshire results confirmed Sanders and Buttigieg as the fields top-tier contenders and elevated Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, who surged from a fifth-place finish in Iowa to a strong third here after a widely praised debate performance on Friday night. But the outcome may end up diminishing two of the fields previous leaders more than it boosts the candidates who came out on top.
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https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/02/bernie-sanderss-narrow-victory-new-hampshire/606433/